CHAPTER 676: THE PRIMORDIAL FORCE OF DESTRUCTION

"Damn it!" Ethan’s face darkened, his breath ragged like someone who’d just dodged death by inches.

He hadn’t expected The Obsidian Dynasty to send someone that powerful.

This was seriously bad news.

He took a moment to steady his breathing, then moved beneath a massive banyan tree, drawing in the surrounding Primordial Force like a sponge soaking up water.

"Master, what happened?!" Feylora came running, clearly panicked.

Ethan waved her off. "I’m fine. But listen—go now and tell everyone: no one leaves Eclipsera Isle. Not a single step, unless I say so."

Feylora didn’t dare hesitate. She turned and sprinted off to deliver the order.

Just then—

BOOM.

The island’s outer barrier trembled again, the deep rumble echoing like thunder. That stone giant wasn’t giving up. It was still hammering away, trying to force its way through the protective shield surrounding Eclipsera Isle.

BOOM.

BOOM.

BOOM.

The air vibrated with each impact, the sheer force of it rippling through the barrier like waves in a storm.

If this kept up, the shield wouldn’t last much longer.

Ethan exhaled slowly, then stepped back a couple paces. Power surged through him, gathering in his hands. He slammed his palm down onto the ground.

The energy barrier around Eclipsera Isle wasn’t just a dome overhead—it was a full sphere, wrapping the island in a seamless shell of protection, even beneath the earth. That’s what had kept the island hidden all this time, cloaked from the outside world.

Now, Ethan forced a massive surge of Primordial Force into the barrier. A new layer of protection shimmered into place above, reinforcing the shield. No matter how hard the stone giant pounded, it wouldn’t be breaking through anytime soon.

That bought them time.

Time for the others in Emerald Castle to power up.

"Ahhh!"

A scream rang out from the distance.

Ethan’s head snapped up. He bolted toward the sound.

Elira had triggered something—some kind of mechanism buried underground.

The earth trembled.

A violent surge of energy erupted from below, rising into the air and forming a massive, glowing sphere. The power radiating from it was wild, chaotic—pure destruction.

Ethan’s eyes widened.

He’d never seen anything like it.

He slowly raised his hand and reached out. The moment his fingers brushed the sphere, that destructive energy shot into his body, tearing through him like wildfire.

"Shit—!"

He yanked his hand back and stumbled several steps away, gritting his teeth as he forced the energy out of his system. It took everything he had, but eventually, the chaos left his body, and he could breathe again.

But then—he noticed something.

His strength had grown. Not just a little—noticeably. That destructive energy had somehow expanded his internal channels, making him stronger.

Ethan’s eyes lit up.

He stepped forward again and touched the energy sphere, this time on purpose. He guided the energy through his limbs, letting it circulate before pushing it out again.

Sure enough—his power deepened even more.

"This stuff is insane," he said, grinning. "You guys should try it. See if it boosts your strength too."

No one hesitated.

One by one, they stepped up and placed their hands on the sphere.

The energy exploded outward, flooding into their bodies.

At first, the pain was unbearable. They screamed, staggered—but then, as their bodies adapted, something changed.

They wanted more.

They craved it.

Soon, they were practically fighting to absorb as much of the energy as they could, drawing it in like addicts chasing a high.

Meanwhile, Ethan crouched down, slapping the ground, trying to trace the source of this power.

Then—he saw it.

A glowing formation etched into the earth, shaped like a six-pointed star.

He reached out and touched it.

Immediately, he felt it—an overwhelming, concentrated pulse of destructive energy, far stronger than what they’d just absorbed.

"This has to be it, right?"

Ethan’s eyes lit up with excitement.

Without wasting a second, he gathered every ounce of power in his body and slammed it down onto the glowing formation. The ground let out a deep, resonating hum and began to tremble violently. From beneath the earth, waves of destructive energy surged upward like a volcanic eruption.

Ding!

"Congratulations, player Valkarion. You have obtained the Umbral Abyss—The Primordial Force of Destruction!"

The system notification echoed in his mind, and Ethan’s excitement shot through the roof.

So this was it—this terrifying energy was the unique Primordial Force of the Umbral Abyss.

At this point, he didn’t care about the risks. He immediately began merging his own power with the Force of Destruction beneath the ground, forcefully drawing it into his body.

But this time, it wasn’t nearly as smooth as before.

The moment that pure, overwhelming energy entered him, his body couldn’t handle it.

It was like trying to swallow a lightning storm.

BOOM!

The force blasted him off his feet and sent him flying through the air.

"AAAHHH!"

RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE—!

If he hadn’t only absorbed a small portion of it, he probably would’ve been blown to pieces right then and there.

"Master!"

The others from Emerald Castle rushed over, panic written all over their faces.

Ethan waved them off, staggering to his feet. Aside from his face being a little scorched and blackened, he was mostly okay.

"Feylora!"

He shouted, and she came bounding over from nearby. She’d been all over Eclipsera Isle lately, soaking up energy like a sponge, and it showed—her aura was stronger than ever.

"Yes, Master? What’s up?"

Ethan pointed toward the swirling mass of destructive energy still rising from the ground. "That power over there—it’s the Primordial Force of this world."

"I want you to try absorbing it. See if you can draw it out."

Feylora rolled up her sleeves without hesitation and ran straight over. The moment her palm touched the Force of Destruction, the wild energy surged into her body.

But unlike the others, who had all screamed in agony when they first absorbed it, Feylora didn’t even flinch.

In fact, it looked like the energy was syncing with her perfectly.

Within seconds, massive amounts of power were flowing into her, merging seamlessly with her own energy. Her aura exploded outward, thick and intense.

Feylora’s breathing quickened.

"Whoa! This stuff is crazy strong!"

Her face lit up with pure, unfiltered excitement.

Without holding back, she cranked up her absorption, pulling in even more. The six-pointed star formation beneath the ground suddenly cracked and detonated, releasing a tidal wave of energy that shot into the air like a geyser.

Feylora opened her mouth like she was about to devour a pastry—

—and took a massive bite out of the floating energy.

Ethan could hardly believe what he was seeing.

As the destructive force poured into her, something strange happened—it began to change. Her Tier started climbing. Fast.

Before this, Feylora had mostly been like a living battery—she could absorb tons of energy, but she couldn’t really use it to level up or fight. Most of the time, she just transferred the excess to others.

But now?

Now her Tier was skyrocketing.

In the blink of an eye, she hit mid-17 Tier.

And she wasn’t slowing down.

Her power kept climbing, visibly rising with every passing second.

Before long, she was already at the peak of 17 Tier.

...